AN: I've had a couple questions regarding Barry's condition in the last chapter. To clarify, while this story is definitely my outlet of whumping glory, Barry did not suffer brain damage, but rather a seizure - just as he did in the flashback to episode 1x20 (god I love that scene) Seizure's can occur for various reasons, one being a dangerous rise in body temperature - reason we have fevers is that most things that invade the body and make us sick can only survive in a narrow range of temperatures. When you have a fever, your body is cooking the invaders out. However, if the fever gets too high, you start to cook too, and that's not good for you or the electrical activity in your brain.

What Barry experienced in the last chapter is called a Postictal State. It's the period of time from after the seizure to when the normal level of consciousness returns. This leads the person to feel tired, having a headache, difficulty speaking, and abnormal behavior. It's not permanent, nor does it lead to permanent brain damage.

Now, this will all be explained further into the story, but for any readers that want to know now and haven't found themselves tagging along, Barry's suffering some serious infections from the toxin. While Zayne Nagle is a well experienced doctor, he also doesn't give 2 F's about the meta's he's taking, and will perform anything on them even at risk of their life. A normal doctor would know that you can't pump a toxin through the spinal cord of someone, but Nagle doesn't really have morals anymore. Sepsis - an infection of the blood - is a major one that'll be played with going forward. The body does a lot of crazy things to fight off infections. A fever over 106 cooks the brain. Let's hope that Barry's healing abilities kick in soon :)

Leecher

It wouldn't be the first time that Cisco was swept away by a speedster. He had adjusted to the rush of wind and adrenaline that accompanied the ride, knowing that it would take minutes for his eyes to stop burning from the dryness it caused, and even longer before his heartbeat would slow down.

Still, he never failed to be surprised upon landing. His feet staggered on the floor before he ultimately fell to his knees, the grip that had been keeping him upright throughout the journey riding themselves of their touch. His vision swarmed and his balance suffered, arms out in the air as if to keep himself steady from the earthquake that only he could feel.

"Ohhh, bad roller coaster, really bad roller coaster..." Cisco muttered, forcing the rising bile in his throat to remain where it was.

It was when two strong hands pulled him upright by the neck of his shirt that he remembered the trouble he was in. Forced to his feet, Cisco stumbled into the room, the hand that laid on his back the only reason he faltered onward.

"Hey, hey!" he shouted, "Easy on the merchandise, man. You break it, you buy.…"

Cisco's eyes suddenly widened, the stinging burn that was already present increasing when he found himself staring ahead and in front of him.

"Oh shit."

"Shut up." The voice was low, angry. It hissed at him with a deep fury, one thicker than the fear in his gut.

Yet the threat went unheard, the gravity of the situation becoming more real than ever at the sight no one could have prepared him to see.

"Barry?"

Cisco fell to his knees, ignoring the impact from the hard ceramic floor below him as he crawled over to where Barry was. His eyes didn't dare to blink, not even as the itchy and coarse rope tied his hands behind his back with a strength that led his muscles to scream with pain.

Barry sat unusually still on the ground, zip ties strapping him to the support beam that his back rested against. His head hung low, and his eyes remained closed. There was no color to his face, except for the light pink blush that tinted his cheeks. Even with his chin to his chest, Cisco could see how sunken in his eyes had become, the dark circles underneath casting a shadow on him that seemed frightening.

How long had it been? Not even a full twenty-four hours yet, and it seemed like Barry had been through weeks of hell.

Cisco swallowed heavily. He felt as the man tightened the rope that secured his arms behind his back, ensuring the restraints would hold, all before he squatted down to where both himself and Barry were.

"Zayne Nagle, right?" he asked, trying to keep his voice from cracking. "Central City's current infamous serial killer...dubbed the 'meta-catcher.' Am I on the right track here?"

Off to Barry's side, Zayne crouched low and grabbed his face with dominance, squeezing his chin tightly to force him to look up.

"Wake up, 'lil scarlet." he slapped his cheeks hard, the sound resonating throughout the room. "There ya go, wake up."

Barry's eyes fluttered open, dancing around the room with confusion. It wasn't long before they settled straight ahead, and though glossed with fever, they widened with shock.

"Cis...cisco." his voice was barely above a whisper, hoarse and dry.

Zayne released his chin as quickly as he had grabbed onto it, and Barry's head fell back down to his chest under the weight of gravity.

"Ah-argh." Barry grunted, the simple movement from his neck sending a blast of agony through his body. He dared not try and lift his head again, rather stare below him at his chest and legs, Cisco's own knees barely in view.

He couldn't help but notice the ties that once bound his lanky legs together were gone. If he had the strength, he would have laughed. While he was still strapped tightly around his chest and his arms bound together behind him, the restraints used on him were becoming less and less as time went on.

No doubt Nagle knew he was too weak to even attempt anything further at this point. It was almost an insult to know the man wasn't worried about him fighting back anymore; it was surely humiliating to be so easily assailed.

"Yes, welcome Cisco." Zayne stood up, "and how right you are, young man. Though I can't say I ever found pleasure in the silly nickname…a mere product from the people in panic. I am the man you were looking for."

"Is that what this is? I knew too much, so you have to get rid of me type of deal?" Cisco chuckled, "Because let me tell you man, just because you have me doesn't mean other people won't find you. Your name's out there now, people are looking and-"

"Shut up." Zayne interrupted, "You're not here to talk."

Cisco furrowed his eyebrows with anger. "Yeah? Why am I here then? Another meta for you to cross off your list?"

"Cisco..." Barry warned, his voice quiet and barely audible.

"You're not nearly good enough for that." Zayne said, "You're a measly pawn."

"Let him go, Nagle." Barry murmured, his head falling back against the support beam with force, a 'thud' echoing at its doing. His chest heaved with his struggles to breathe, a few words leaving him gasping for air.

Zayne shook his head, "I warned you from the very beginning, Barry. If you couldn't get me what I needed, I'd have a Plan B ready to go."

"You're not going to find him," Barry said.

"You're right. I'm not going to find him." Zayne patted Cisco on the back, a large, toothy grin pulling at his lips. "He will. Just like he told me all about my mistakes the first time around. He'll show me where your little sidekick is, won't you Cisco?"

"I have...no clue what you're talking about." Cisco fumbled, "But whatever you need, I'm sure there are other ways I can help. I'm a bio-engineer, I know a lot of chemists and scientists and whatever you need-"

"I don't need your intelligence. I'm a smart and skilled man myself. What I need..." Zayne tapped at Cisco's forehead, "is that ability of yours."

"Huh? I don't-"

"Do not play dumb with me!" Zayne shouted, violently grabbing a lock of Cisco's hair in his hands, forcing him to look straight ahead at Barry.

"If you don't want to end up like your friend here, who so desperately needs to play a goddamn hero, then I suggest you fucking cooperate with me, Mr. Ramon."

Cisco held his breath, daring not to show the terror that boiled in the pit of his stomach. Barry couldn't even look at him, his eyes straight up and at the ceiling above them. If his friend's condition wasn't enough to realize this wouldn't be an easy escape, the fact that Nagle knew his name and about his powers were.

"Okay man, but you-you gotta know...it doesn't work that way. I can't control my powers. I-I can't just get them to work for you on the fly."

Zayne yanked at his hair harder, causing a whimper to escape his throat.

"You will do what I need you to do, and that's sitting here and wait while I.…" Zayne trailed off, squeezing his eyes shut while the grip he had begun to shake intensely. With his other hand, he reached over to Barry, grabbing his throat with force.

For a split moment, Cisco could have sworn he saw the skin surrounding Zayne's fingers and hand illuminate, a bright eerie glow radiating from him before diminishing like a setting sunset.

"Fucking hell!" he screamed, standing up and sending a kick at Barry, his foot colliding with the side of his chest.

Barry yelped, crawling into his body the best he could while still being restrained. He felt nauseous, blood rushing in his ears as his body tipped sideways.

Zayne panted and paced, his shoulders slouched with tension. It was a moment of irritably that they had yet to see, a loss of composure that showed the anger and weakness their captor had been controlling.

He turned and pointed to Cisco with a feral rage. "When I get back, I will be taking whatever mental voodoo you have going on."

Even if Cisco wanted to whip out a snarky response, he never had the time. Zayne left the room in a blink, and he truly couldn't decipher if it was speed or teleportation that he had just witnessed. Regardless of which, it left him shaken and confused.

"Alright...on creepy villain scale, that dude is a solid seven." Cisco frowned, turning back to Barry. "How does he know about me and vibe - Barry?"

His heart leaped in his chest, followed by a flow of panic. Barry's eyes were unfocused, and his body lifted with each intake of air that he struggled to receive.

"Can't.…" he gasped, "…breathe..."

"Okay, okay, just…" Cisco fumbled forward on his knees, "one breath at a time, dude. In and out, watch me – in and out…"

Though he tried to guide Barry through each inhale and exhale that left his body, it wasn't enough. His once pale face began to get hotter with color.

"Barry? No no no, stay with me." Cisco panicked, "Talk to me, tell me something...Barry, stay. with. me."

Cisco's words went unheard. He watched as Barry's eyes rolled back into his head, the whites of his eyes visible before his eyelids closed on them and his head dropped down.

With his hands bound behind his back, Cisco found himself remaining still. He spent what felt like an entirety simply watching his friend in front of him, helpless and worried for the longest time that he was staring at a dead man.

Joe was getting irritated.

"Cisco!"

Their voices echoed the factory, bouncing off the walls with no response. They had been there long enough to adjust to the rotting smell that lingered in the building, and the setting sun outside spoke of the time that had passed.

"Cisco, where are you!?" Joe was beyond irritated now, looking at the watch on his wrist with a frustrated growl.

Caitlin ran a hand through her long locks of hair, biting her lower lip with worry.

"This is not good," she stated, spinning around in a circle.

Iris shook her head, "He has to be here. Has anyone tried calling his cell phone?"

"Five times. It goes straight to voicemail." Joe informed them, stuffing his own cell phone in his pocket.

"This is not good," Caitlin repeated.

"Where would he go?" Iris pressed, still searching under the numerous tables like they were playing a bad game of hide-and-seek.

"Nowhere. There's no reason for him not to be answering his phone...someone had to have taken him." Caitlin explained.

Joe sighed with resolve. "Crap."

"Okay, everyone …take a breath..." Iris stressed, "he'll show up. We just need to wait-"

"We don't have time for that, Iris." Joe interrupted, "I need to call the Captain. The sooner we put in a 10-57, the sooner we-"

"Whoa, hold on dad!" Iris exclaimed. "Aren't you the one that said we need to protect Barry's identity? Putting in a missing person report on Cisco will only raise suspicion."

Caitlin shook her head. "I don't disagree, but...we're talking about the meta-catcher here."

"Caitlin's right. I can't risk Cisco's life to keep Barry's identity a secret." Joe said, ready to dial on his phone had it not been for Iris gently, yet with a concerning amount of strength, grab his wrist.

"Dad…" Iris looked straight into his eyes, and in that moment, she felt the stress and the worry that her father held stronger than her own.

"Cisco would put his life on the line in a heartbeat for Barry, Joe." Caitlin solemnly said.

Joe snapped his head over to her direction. "Cisco isn't here to make that decision."

"Okay, just..." Iris groaned. "Let's get back to S.T.A.R labs. We'll make a decision there."

On the anxious seat to leave the building, Iris barely took a moment to look back at where Joe stood, staring at the floor like it would reveal something. She was about to call to his attention when he spun on his heels, angrily stomping past her and forward to his squad car.

When she was seven, she learned that unlike her friend's parents, her father never swore – that was, unless he was extremely angry. She had broken one of his vintage jazz LP records, and it resulted in a sturdy lecture. When she tried sneaking out of the house for an underage house party in high school, he gave her the cold shoulder for a week. Yet when she tried to meet up with a stranger from an online chat room, he cursed every swear word she knew, plus some.

Sinking into the front seat of his car, it was hard to ignore the spew of curse words that he muttered on his way back to Central City.

The room was so quiet that Cisco could hear his heart beating in his ears. So, when a soft and muffled hiccup caught his attention, he was drawn to the noise like a frightened animal.

"Barry?" he asked, "Barry, you with me, man?"

A low groan responded, followed by a loud exhale. Cisco almost laughed – in fact, a light chuckle echoed the air at the relief that spread over him. A few moments passed as Barry fought consciousness, taking in the sterile air like a fish out of water.

Cisco sighed. "Dude, you scared the living jeepers out of me."

His eyes finally opened, flickering back and forth before settling on Cisco with resign.

"…sorry…" Barry breathed, his shoulders heaving with the exhaustion.

"Yeah, water under the bridge and whatnot." Cisco crawled forward, "I know it's a redundant question but…how you doing?"

Barry paused, almost as if he was considering how he should answer the question. It resulted in a small smirk that pulled at his lips.

"My toes are cold."

Cisco found himself doing a once-over on Barry, this time taking in his full state with no distractions. If it weren't for his short-sleeved cotton t-shirt and undershorts, he'd be stark naked without his flash suit.

Speaking of…

"Would it be inappropriate to ask what happened to my suit?"

"Dammnit, Cisco..." Barry squeezed his eyes shut, his face contorting with a mixture of frustration and pain. "How'd he...you..."

"I don't know." Cisco answered, "Dude obvious knows about me. I have no idea how..."

"He touched you. Days ago...he..." Barry groaned, "He...he can...he can take..." Struggling to speak, Barry's mouth opened and closed repeatedly, though sound didn't always escape.

"He can take abilities." Cisco finished his sentence. "We kind of theorized that.…knowing it's true though -...damn."

He stared at Barry, watching as he struggled to breathe, his chest moving with exertion. Cisco could say with honesty that of all the things he thought, expected and even panicked over, he never considered this to be a possibility. When Zoom had Barry beaten like a rag doll, to when Barry had tried to regain his powers and lost his body to the speed force, Cisco had witnessed each event with distress. None of them compared to this very moment, though.

"Barry, what's he done to you?" Cisco asked.

Barry's focus wasn't on answering his question, but rather fighting off the dark spots that clouded his vision.

"Hurts...to breathe..." he mumbled, gasping for air.

"Yeah man, I can tell. Just, uh...just try and stay with me this time." Cisco crawled further on his knees, though hands were still tied behind his back and useless to provide any help.

The closer he got to Barry, the more heat he felt radiating off him, burning into the air like an oven. His skin was damp with sweat, though his arms trembled with shivers. It wasn't the normal warmth that normally emitted from the speed force. No, Cisco didn't even know if the speed force was still present at this moment.

"I can't...I can't get us out of here..." Barry said.

"You don't need to," Cisco responded. "We've been looking for you, man. We found a whole bunch of information, and it's only been a day. Even if we're stuck here for a while...Nagle isn't as hidden as he thinks. I vibed his address before he took me, I...I think that's where we are now. Or it could be an old address we can track down...we got this though, we'll get out of here."

Cisco had hoped that his revelation would lead to some optimism in Barry, but he was starting to feel like most of his words weren't even heard. His head sagged low, his eyes unfocused.

"Come on, talk to me. Tell me something." Cisco begged.

"Wally." Barry breathed. "He needs...Wally."

His words were short, limited by the lack of energy that was stolen from him. Cisco would greedily take each word he could get. After all, while he surely didn't plan to land in the same room with the captive hero, he wouldn't let it go for not.

He'd get them out, one way or the other.

"Okay, but why? What does he want?" Cisco asked.

"Speed." Barry choked out. "Healing. He's...dying."

"But he's got you. If he's been taking your powers, why does he need Wally's too?"

Barry looked up at him, his expression grim. It spoke more than words ever could. Cisco found himself tugging at the rope keeping his hands restrained and useless behind his back.

"Shit Barry, what's he doing to you?"

"He's...he's losing his ability to...to take from us. His molecular structure...is decomposing. He's losing the other...abilities he's taken. He can't hold...the speed force won't stay... in him. He can't figure out...how it works."

Cisco nodded his head, suddenly making sense of the situation. "He's a walking sponge. But like a sponge, it can only absorb so much water. The more he takes, the more he loses. He's not catching meta's...he's leeching from them."

"Don't.…let him touch...you," Barry said. "He'll take...take your...vibe...and you.…days to get back. He'll...find Wally."

"Dude, Wally's safe with your dad right now. It's you that's freaking me out."

He looked around, crawling on his knees to find anything at all that would help aid him in the situation. "I'm going to find a way to get us out of here, I promise."

Barry wanted to argue, but even his pessimism wasn't strong enough to overcome his deteriorating health. He settled for a pathetic whimper, chin once more falling to his chest.

The room was empty, aside from a slab metal table on the opposite end of them, trays of surgical instruments littered on top. They flickered in the light, as if a sign for him to see.

"I got an idea." Cisco struggled to get up and off his knees, swaying to the side before finding his balance. As he stumbled to the other end of the room, he did a double take at his surroundings to ensure he was alone, aside from Barry of course.

The glimmer of scalpels and wires were just in eyesight, taunting him and the ropes that bound his hands. He turned his back to where his fingers could reach out for one of the instruments, cutting at the rope with a scalpel that was way too sharp for his liking.

Just when he felt the ropes breaking apart, the muscles in his shoulders aching at separation, a force hit the back of his head so quickly that he barely saw stars before falling to the ground, never experiencing the impact.

"Cisco?" Barry winced at the sound, the throbbing in his head increasing.

When he forced his eyes open again, he could see that Zayne had reemerged, tossing a limp and unconsciousness Cisco into the corner of the room and throwing the rusted metal hammer next to him.

"Cis-!" A sharp cry interrupted him, his hoarse voice cracking at the effort.

The pain was indescribable. Nerves screamed in agony at their abuse. Pain radiated from his back and chest, snaking down his torso, up into his shoulders, into his arms, and stole his breath away; the breath that was already so hard to come across. Barry felt the pounding beats of his heart, the palpitations out of synch and flip-flopping in distress. He shivered as he felt his life being drained out of him.

"I may not be able to leech your speed much longer," Zayne pointed his way, "but I will happily watch as the Compound MB-2 kills you from septic shock."

Being unable to bear it any longer, Barry did what he had tried not to do for so long - he screamed. He cried until his throat burnt and he had no breath left, leaving him spent, shuddering, and painting. He felt the salty tang of tears in his mouth, and he knew he should have been furious at his weakness; he should have been using his anger as strength to fight the man, to save not only himself but now his friend caught in the mix.

He couldn't move, he could barely breathe, and it felt like his insides were on fire. The pain never receded, and it never let up, not since the moment he had left the abandoned factory. That was only a day ago. With horror, he realized that if all this had gone down in such a short amount of time, there was a high probability that he wouldn't make it through the next day.

Barry shuddered, closing his eyes and listening to his rasping breathing with one thought in his head.

He just wanted to go home.

Every little sound was audible in the cortex of S.T.A.R labs, making Iris aware that more computers were used then she originally thought. Even when they weren't active, they emitted a beeping noise or the wind of fans that kept them cool. A part of her was relieved, knowing that pure silence would drive her insane.

Passing by her father, who sat by himself in deep thought near the glass case where the Flash's suit – Barry's suit – was normally kept, she made her way into the med lab, the shadow of a figure's outline catching her attention.

"Hey," Iris said, gently laying a hand on Caitlin's shoulder. "How are you doing?"

Caitlin looked up in surprise, "Huh? Oh, I'm fine."

Iris shot up an eyebrow, her disbelief clear as day for the answer she received.

"Okay, so I'm a little...frazzled," Caitlin admitted. "It's just...within a day, both my friends have gone missing."

"Hey," Iris took a seat next to her, "we're going to find them. Both Barry and Cisco..."

Caitlin barely nodded. "Yeah."

Iris wished she could have been more encouraging, suddenly wondering how and where Barry got the optimism he did to push forward in these circumstances. The situation was dark and bleak, and even she couldn't find where the hope laid on this one. Her words seemed empty, but at the same time, she felt the need to say them.

Maybe if she believed hard enough, something good would happen.

"You should probably go home and rest, you've been here all day." Caitlin spoke up, no doubt suddenly aware of the darkness that fell from the glass ceilings above them, the night stars peeking through the windows.

"I don't think I'll be going home tonight." Iris sighed, looking over her shoulder. "I don't think my dad will either."

Caitlin looked at the direction she stared at, seeing Joe slumped over in a chair with his chin resting on his palm.

"He's really upset, isn't here?" Caitlin asked.

Iris nodded. "He blames himself. For some…insane reason he feels that not only could he have stopped Barry from being taken, but Cisco too. I'm really shocked he hasn't reported him missing yet."

It was an argument, and a loud one. Ultimately, they came to a compromise – if Cisco didn't return or wasn't found by morning, the CCPD would be on the case. Caitlin felt sick at the thought, knowing full well that like the other five victims who were taken, he probably wouldn't be found alive.

"Hopefully he won't need to." Caitlin mumbled.

The situation just didn't feel real anymore.

Iris sighed. "It's weird...being home without Barry. Being home knowing he's somewhere...unsafe. I can't lay down in bed knowing he could be…"

"Yeah, I know." Caitlin responded. "It feels too quiet here without Cisco."

A gentle knock on the door frame caught their attention, interrupting their conversation. They turned their heads to see Wells approaching them.

"Snow..." Harry announced. "I need you to come see this."

Both exchanging a quick glance of concern, they hopped up from the gurney they had been sitting on and paced into the cortex.

"What's going on?" Iris anxiously asked, noting the sudden presence of Wally who stood side by side with Wells.

"While you guys were away, Harry did some more tests on my blood – a speedster's blood." Wally announced, arms crossed over his chest.

"And?" Joe asked, looking up with bloodshot eyes.

Harry had Caitlin looking down into the microscope set out on the desk, swapping out different sample slides for her.

Wells spoke up, "The poison that was in those syringes-"

"Can we not call it poison?" Joe interrupted.

"You want me to call it unicorn saliva?" Harry shot back.

"Guys!" Iris exclaimed, rubbing her temples. "What about it?"

"The compound," Harry stated, "when mixed with Wally's blood, settled over his cells like a blanket. One example showed separation within a short time frame; less than an hour his cells regulated and returned to normal. Continued doses did the opposite."

He switched out a slide under the microscope. "That sample there, Snow? That's blood that's received multiple applications."

Joe shot up. "What is it? What are you seeing?"

"It's…" Caitlin looked up at him, "it's not separating."

"It's permanent?" Iris's voice was tight and full of concern.

Harry shrugged. "Think of it like colors. If you layer blue on yellow, it will only take so many layers before it turns green. It's no longer the color you started with."

"So is it permanent?" Joe snapped, his composure breaking at the seams.

"I don't know!" Harry exclaimed back. "But it's not good! It can't change the DNA structure or molecular structure of the cells, so no, I don't foresee it suppressing abilities forever. But if it's applied enough times, it sure as hell could be a mess to dichotomize."

Joe shook his head, his fist pounding down on the table with enough strength to make the microscope shake. He didn't announce where he was going, rather he left the cortex with heavy footsteps.

Iris collapsed into the nearest chair, unsure of what to say or how to proceed. After all, the night was just beginning, and she had already not slept from the evening before. At a loss, she sat still and quiet.

The S.T.A.R lab's logo bounced around on the monitors in front of her.